Gloves are often used to protect a wearer's hands from heat exposure but, without modification, would be cumbersome if used by a hair stylist to handle hair heated by a flat or curling iron.
Various modifications to conventional gloves have therefore been developed for particular use by hair stylists.
For example, to facilitate better handling of hair after or in conjunction with use of an iron, Banks et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,751,747, discloses a three-fingered glove to shield the hand of a beautician including a pair of finger-encompassing sheaths having a stretchable back that extends and envelopes a forefinger and middle finger of a wearer's hand and thermal insulating material on a side planar to the palm of the hand and a stretchable fabric on the remaining back portion configured to grip and maintain the sheath upon the fingers of the wearers hand when placed thereupon through the retractable nature of the stretch fabric. Further, the glove includes a thumb-encompassing sheath that is adapted to stretchably surround the thumb of the wearer's hand and has thermal insulating material on the same side as the palm of the hand and stretchable fabric on the remaining portion. The thumb-encompassing sheath is configured to grip and maintain the sheath upon the thumb of the hand when placed thereupon in view of the retractable nature of the stretch fabric. The glove also includes a narrow bridge of thermal insulating material integral with, and connected to the finger and thumb-encompassing sheaths, forming an insulating web therebetween. The bridge does not impede the movement of the fingers thereby allowing a hot hair iron to be handled without burning the hand contiguously engaging the iron while manipulating hair around the iron during the process of hair curling by a beautician.
Subsequent to Banks et al., Battle, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,203, disclose a more complete protective glove for hair stylists for protecting a hair stylist's hands from being burned while using hot irons. This glove includes a glove portion comprised of an open wrist portion for receiving a hand therein, a palm portion, a back portion, a thumb portion, an index finger portion, a middle finger portion, a ring finger portion, and a pinkie finger portion. The thumb portion, middle finger portion, ring finger portion, and pinkie finger portion each have an open upper end whereby tips of these fingers of the hand are exposed. The glove portion includes an internal padded layer and an external fabric layer, and a thermal shield disposed over the external fabric layer. The thermal shield covers the palm portion, the index finger portion, and an interior of the middle finger portion. The open wrist portion includes a tightening strap that can be closed to secure the glove portion of the hand.
Aside from the difficulty of the hair stylists needing to handle hot hair, it is also a problem for the hair stylist to avoid cutting themselves while using a scissor to cut hair. A modified glove that addresses this problem is disclosed in Brewer, U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,828. Brewer discloses a finger protector for hair stylist's fingers useful to protect the index finger and second finger of one hand from being pierced and cut by scissors which are used in the other hand during the cutting and styling of hair. This finger protector includes an open-ended, two-finger body having a lower open end portion, a web portion between the two fingers and an upper open end portion which extends from the lower end portion to cover the first knuckles of the index and second fingers. The unitary two-fingered body portion is thickened on the inside for the index finger and the second finger. The web portion between the index finger and the second finger separates these fingers at an angle between about 25° to about 35°. This angular separation facilitates pulling the body over the index and second fingers over the knuckles and into the web between the two fingers in the palm area while permitting the remaining fingers and the thumb to curl below the index finger and second finger and to be completely exposed when the hair stylist grasps the tips of the hair for cutting.
The foregoing patents do not disclose a hair styling accessory that can be attached to only two adjacent fingers of a hair stylist and allow for use in conjunction with ironing as well as with different hair styling implements.